


a most lovely tarnish

by TheSpaceCoyote



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Aging, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Feelings, Fluff, Force Visions, Grand Marshal Armitage Hux, Growing Old Together, Kissing, M/M, Soft Kylux, Supreme Leader Kylo Ren
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-07
Updated: 2019-09-07
Packaged: 2020-10-11 21:10:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,239
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20552750
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheSpaceCoyote/pseuds/TheSpaceCoyote
Summary: Kylo returns from a mission with a few more grey hairs than he had before. Hux is fascinated, and maybe a little attracted to how well his lover seems to be aging.





	a most lovely tarnish

**Author's Note:**

> Dedicated to Adam Driver's one grey hair, thanks for spawning this idea. We couldn't have done it without you. 
> 
> Just some small sweet fluff involving these two and their thoughts about growing older together. Enjoy!

The Supreme Leader is due to return today, and as he’s well known to do, Grand Marshal Armitage Hux is going to go meet him when he lands. 

He'd received the notification from Kylo's shuttle only minutes ago, but Hux has already nearly arrived at the hangar bay, pace a little quicker than usual. It’s almost a point of pride for him to be the first one to see Kylo when he returns to the _ Finalizer_. Hux considers it a privilege he alone is worthy of, and stars help whoever stands in between him and his lover after they've been parted for so long. Once, a hangar mechanic had spilled a couple of gas canisters in front of Hux’s path and stalled him further with an incensing babble of apologies, ultimately allowing some lowly line technician to be the first one to greet Kylo upon his descent down the gangplank. Hux had been positively apoplectic at that, and probably would have ordered both the mechanic and technician executed, or at least reconditioned, if the Supreme Leader hadn’t distracted him with a "hello" kiss moments later. 

A group of officers give their superior a wide berth and shoot each other knowing looks as Hux strides past them into the turbolift. Once he's alone, Hux allows himself more of a giddy smile. He's eagerly awaiting one of those "hello" kisses today. Kylo always kisses Hux the best after a long mission, like he’s forgotten the taste of his lips in the time they’ve been apart and desperately needs to be reminded. Lucky for Kylo that Hux has no qualms about refreshing his memory, not even in front of their men, in the open space of the hangar bay. There are no consequences for making their relationship public, not anymore. Both of them are untouchable now, perched at the top of the Order as a pair, and while perceptions and appearances are naturally important, so is affirming the bond between them without holding back. 

The air in the hangar smells crisp and chemical, tinged with hints of sanitizer and burnt ozone. The steel floors have been properly cleaned and shined, all gathered personnel busying themselves in preparation for the Supreme Leader’s arrival. Hux has come with the pair of special-forces Stormtrooper guards Kylo insists accompany him in his absence, though they keep a couple respectable paces behind him. Hux can’t say he’ll miss their constant presence, but they’ve done their job serviceably enough. Stormtroopers aren’t great conversationalists, but he’s had a bit of fun asking them personal questions unexpected from a superior officer and watching them stumble as they try to answer.

Hux walks a little faster once he hears the announcement echo over the intercom and sees the shadow of Kylo’s shuttle creep out of the depths of space. His boots click on the steel floor, propriety slipping away from him with each step. If he’s causing heads to turn, he doesn’t mind_—_his men understand the consequences of judging their superior and to keep their words to themselves. And if they know what’s good for them, they’ll keep their disparaging thoughts buried deep inside their minds as well, especially once the Supreme Leader arrives and listens for their treachery. 

The shuttle skims elegantly into the hangar. Hux can tell by the deft descent that Kylo is piloting_—_a bit of a rarity, nowadays, but it appears he’s still as skilled as ever. That brings a little smile to Hux’s lips, no doubt the first of many, as the shuttle slides in for a perfect landing. 

Pure happiness bubbles in Hux’s chest as the gangplank hisses, lowering to the floor. Hux is practically running at the first glimpse of Kylo’s boots, though embarrassment at his own eagerness settles in before long and he slows his pace. Kylo manages to catch the tail end of his jog regardless, and the fond smile that crosses his lips makes it easy for Hux to forget his self consciousness. Especially when Kylo strides up to him_—_all relaxed, confident reverence and power_—_and presses their lips together. 

For a moment, the din of the hangar bay fades, and all Hux can hear is both of their heartbeats gradually coming back into sync. 

“Did you see my landing?” is the first thing Kylo says after the kiss, with all the pride of a child eager to please their parents. He dismisses Hux’s guards with a distracted wave, all his attention focused elsewhere. 

Hux chuckles, hands settling on Kylo’s wide shoulders. “I did. I suppose this means your eyes aren’t going, are they?” He feels Kylo’s hands trail down the slope of his back, though they halt before they do something lewd and just hold him by the hips. 

“Better than ever, as a matter of fact. There was a small field of asteroids on our approach, but you’ll be pleased to find not a single dent in the hull.”

“I see." Hux cocks his head coyly. "Would you like a prize for such a feat?”

Kylo presses in even closer to Hux, wrapping his arms around his waist as he tugs him flush against his front. Hux puts on a face of mock upset, but doesn’t resist. His hands slide over Kylo’s shoulders to palm his back, bringing him into a proper embrace. Nose to nose with Kylo now, Hux inhales deeply, drawing in a lungful of his lover’s familiar scent. Every subtle note dances in his senses. Leather. Musk. Scorched air, with an edge of sweetness that might be imagined. 

Kylo smiles, leaning in. 

“I think another kiss will do.”

Hux hums as that kiss quickly turns into several more in quick succession, Kylo mapping his lips all over his face, reacquainting themselves with the territory. They feel a little chapped, roughed by teeth. Kylo has kicked some of his bad habits_—_such as destroying Order property in his rage_—_but still he nibbles and licks his plump lower lip whenever he’s nervous or lonely. With only a pair of red-armored guards and a bare bones flight crew to accompany him, Hux assumes his ravaged lips are due to the latter. 

The thought of Kylo alone and quiet in the cockpit, gazing out into endless cold space, makes Hux want to return the favor and pepper his face in his own kisses, to connect the spaces in between his speckled moles. But when Kylo obediently dips his head to let Hux dab his lips against his temple, he notices something different than before. 

Hux had been so distracted by the kissing that he’d almost entirely missed the change in Kylo’s hair. It’s perhaps a little longer than it had been when he’d left on his mission, and unkempt as usual, but that’s not it. Hux tips his head curiously, reaching up to touch Kylo’s forehead, right where it meets his scalp. 

It’s not that the streak of grey in Kylo’s hair is new to Hux. On the contrary, he’d grown quite accustomed to its presence_—_like a fissure of light, cracking across the black sky of Kylo’s mane. But now it seems it’s spreading, undaunted as it valiantly illuminates more of the darkness around it. 

“You’re getting greyer,” Hux comments, letting the silvery locks filter through his fingers, to confirm it’s not just a trick of the eye. It isn't_—_there is definitely a lot more pepper to Kylo's unfurling mane than before. 

Hux has kept a watchful eye on these kind of changes for awhile now. He even remembers when he first noted the strands of aging hair_—_in the aftermath of a skirmish in which Kylo was forced to save his life, at unpleasant physical cost to himself. Hux had bypassed protocol and sat at Kylo’s bedside as the medic tended to the ugly burns on his hands and arms, ruined sleeves and gloves having already been cut away. He had kept a hand on Kylo’s thigh to reassure him, needing to be close but unwilling to cause him further pain. Hux had been watching the distant expression on his already bandaged face, waiting for Kylo to resurface as he always did, when he’d realized that the sheen glimmering in his hair wasn’t from the stark medbay lights above, but rather a part of it. 

In his surprise Hux had forgotten himself and raised a hand to touch the scatter of silver strands where there weren’t any before, starting at the left side of his hairline and streaking back through messy, umber waves. Much like the arc of lightning Kylo had used to cut down the Resistance grunt that had threatened Hux’s life. 

“Am I?” Kylo unconsciously raises his hand, fingers brushing against Hux’s knuckles. He lets a gentle smirk flicker on his lips. “I still can’t believe I’m going grey before you are.”

“Oh? What’s that supposed to mean?” Hux gives the silky locks in his grasp a brief, reproachful tug, careful not to pull loose any of the lovely silver hairs. 

“You’re the one always neglecting sleep and food and overworking yourself into a panic. I would’ve thought you’d be the one to age prematurely.”

“_Mmm_. Knowing my luck? I’ll probably forgo the whole process entirely and just drop dead in the middle of paperwork one of these days.”

A shadow flits across Kylo’s face, sinking into his eyes and turning the warm brown a shade more mournful. Hux realizes the mistake of his joke quickly, but before he can rectify it Kylo leans in so slowly he can feel his breath flutter against his eyelashes. Hux expects him to lay another kiss on his lips, but instead Kylo rests their foreheads together. One hand leaves the small of his back, rising to cup Hux’s cheek. 

“Ren?” Hux whispers, only for Kylo to hush him softly. Hux notices his eyes are closed, so he follows suit and closes his as well. 

At first there is nothing but the inside of his eyelids, the darkness more reddish than completely black thanks to the intensity of the hangar lights above. But slowly, something started to spark in between the spidery veins and visual noise, before growing to encompass the whole world around him. 

Twilight skies dotted by twin moons. Crystalline spires of a palace extending far up, beckoning formations of fighters home to roost. A sleek balcony overlooking a dense, cosmopolitan city that eventually gives away into acres of rich, fertile plains. Hux feels something against his hand and looks_—_well, looks as best as he can with his eyes closed, which is fairly well thanks to Kylo_—_to find a gloved palm brushing over his knuckles. Hux watches as it rests over the back of his hand, shielding, before intertwining their fingers together. A soft squeeze brings his attention back up.

It is undeniably Kylo that looks back at him, lips eased into a fond, knowing smile. More moles blossom across his face than at present, and the scar Hux knows over his right eye has a couple of companions_—_a feathery burst running in the opposite direction up towards his left temple, as well as a raised, messy crater peering just above the collar of his robes. 

But Hux would be remiss to overlook the most striking change. Kylo’s fledgling grey has spread all over hair, turning his flowing locks into a crown of silver, flurried about his face like a wolf’s mane. He wears a real crown too, of jet black and garnet, but to Hux it looks far less magnificent. 

Then the vision shifts, and Hux sees himself through this Kylo’s eyes—aged, yes, but with an undeniable sprightliness to his posture and a proud, comfortable expression on his face. Hux expects his wrinkles would be far more severe than that, considering how frequently he scowls and sneers, but the lines in his face are soft and delicately pink, like little veins in the petals of a pressed flower. Hux watches his older self run his free hand through his hair and finds that the bleached streaks at his temples aren’t caused by the moonlight above, but by distinguished white combed back against both sides of his skull, like contrails streaming across a sunset aether. His eyes_—_shifting between sea green and skies of storms_—_carry a depth in them Hux knows he has yet to reach. 

“You’ll be beautiful too,” comes Kylo’s whisper, both right in front of Hux and echoing in this distant, wondrous future. The vision flutters away from Hux as Kylo’s hands leave him, though he stays close. For a moment, it’s hard to think of a reply. 

“You’re growing a little maudlin in your old age.” When Hux finally speaks he tries to sound dismissive, like he’s putting up with Kylo’s sentimentality, but his misty eyes and choked voice betray him. “I almost can’t believe it. Whatever happened to that sulky, apathetic young malcontent I met all those years ago?”

Softened leather returns to cradle both of Hux’s cheeks, keeping their gazes locked. Kylo looks at him like he’s a marvel, like he’s cupping all the world in his hands, that nothing else outside of it matters. Hux has never felt more centered, more secure—except maybe a moment later, when Kylo speaks in a whisper against his temple. Words of blessing against wispy hair, a planted seed to further blossom into a long, fruitful life.

“You made him fall in love with you.”

**Author's Note:**

> Comments are welcome as always! Thanks for reading :)
> 
> Hit me up on [Tumblr](http://thethespacecoyote.tumblr.com) and [Twitter](https://twitter.com/heir_of_breath7/).


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